Books Read in March: 20
Books Read for the Year: 47/215
Topical Books/Monthly Goal Books:
A Life Intercepted, by Charles Martin (audio). This book. Like all of Martin’s works, it just blew me away. I don’t even like football, and he made it fascinating.
Brown Boy Nowhere, by Sheeryl Lim (TBR). This was a decent read.
Treasures, Demons, and Other Black Magic, by Meghan Ciana Doidge (TBR). Another fun entry in this series.
Rogue, by Rachel Vincent (re-read). I’m enjoying re-reading this series…which I basically remember nothing about.
Crossed, by Allie Condie (re-read). Enjoyed this re-read.
The Iron Traitor, by Julie Kagawa. I can’t remember if this is a re-read or not, but I loved it.
The Bad Weather Friend, by Dean Koontz (TBR). Koontz’s gift for words sometimes makes me just sit there and stare at the page for a few seconds in wonder.
My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s sorry, by Fredrik Backman (re-read). This book. On my second read, it still ranks in my top ten list of books. Just such gloriously well-done characters.
For Review:
Heartless Hunter, by Kristen Ciccarelli. I enjoyed this very much! Loved the world, the characters, and the story itself.
In Which Margo Halifax Earns Her Shocking Reputation, by Alexandra Vasti. This was a fun audio read. Margo is a bit much at times, but I liked her—and Henry.
Kilt Trip, by Alexandra Kiley. This was a fun read! By halfway through, I was ready to pack and run away to Scotland!
Heir Apparently, by Kara McDowell (review forthcoming…in July). Okay, so here’s what happened: I tried—and failed—to read seven books in a row and ended up DNFing Every. Single. One. That’s definitely a record for me. So, I decided to console myself by reading this one (Read the first one a couple of months ago and was immediately distraught I had to wait months until this one came out). This was the perfect pick-me-up read! It was funny, it was cute, it was romantic…it was perfect!
The Summer She Went Missing, by Chelsea Ichaso. I love a good YA and a good mystery, and this was both! Add that to the in-love-with-her-best-friend’s-brother trope, and I thoroughly enjoyed the read.
An Unlikely Proposition, by Rosalyn Eves. This was just a meh read. I felt like I was watching a mediocre telenovela.
A Feather So Black, by Lyra Selene. Oh, I really loved this! The world with it’s different cultures was fascinating, and Fia was a character I really related to: never belonging anywhere and always looking for the place she belongs—or the person she belongs with. Can’t wait to read more of this!
Bad Like Us, by Gabriella Lepore. This was a quick, pseudo-locked room murder mystery read. The victim wasn’t a likable person, so I honestly didn’t care much who killed her.
The Berlin Letters, by Katherine Reay. I’d never read anything set in this time/place, so I found it fascinating.
The Underground Library, by Jennifer Ryan (review forthcoming). I loved the strong female characters, the setting was fascinating, and of course I loved all the books.
Expiration Dates, by Rebecca Serle (review forthcoming). This was a fun read!
Just Because:
Welcome to the Basement, by Tim Ross (audio). I’ve been a fan of Tim Ross’s since he was a pastor at my church, and I love The Basement podcast, too. He makes everything so relatable, and I love that he narrated this.
Left Unfinished:
Promchanted, by Morgan Matson. Stella was so annoyingly self-centered I couldn’t get through very much of this.
The Trouble with You, by Ellen Feldman. This felt like it was dragging to me, and Fanny felt so passive at life. She might have changed later in the book, but my attention kept wandering and it just didn’t hold my interest.
Death in Hilo, by Eric Redman. I didn’t make it very far in this. I just wasn’t a fan of the narrative style.
Ill-fated Fortune, by Jennifer J. Chow. This really just seemed like all fluff and no substance. I needed a bit more to keep my attention.
I Only Read Murder, by Will and Ian Ferguson. I don’t like unlikable characters…and Miranda wasn’t interesting enough to carry off being a horrible person.
A Tempest of Tea, by Hafsah Faizal. Arthie was a bit of a dud, and I refuse to waste my time reading about a boring main character. The setting was also confusing, and that’s a death knell for a book.
Kindling, by Traci Chee. Second-person-POV books are hard to pull off, and this…failed, coming across as chaotic and confusing. Also not a fan of the unmentioned LGBTQA rep. Not everyone wants to read it, so why not tag it as such?
I am Rome, by Santiago Postguillo. This was probably an excellent book, but the pacing and style just didn’t work for me and made my attention wander. The irony is not lost on me that I stopped reading this on the Ides of March.
Good Half Gone, by Tarryn Fisher. I made it about 20% of the way through this, but…it was a struggle. The writing was solid, no problems there. But the characters just didn’t work for me. I didn’t like either sister in the past, and I didn’t care for Irish in the present, either. Ergo, this was a no-go for me. I didn’t like the characters, so it didn’t keep my attention.
Maya’s Laws of Love by Alina Khawaja. This just wasn’t for me. The MC wasn’t for me. I don’t know very much about this faith and culture, but the first 10% just didn’t feel like it lined up with what I do know.
The Happiness Blueprint, by Ally Zetterberg. DNFed at about 10% because, if there’s one thing I can’t stand, it’s anyone who sits around feeling sorry for themselves and making excuses. I don’t like people like that in real life, and I don’t like them in fiction—it’s just much easier to walk away with fictional characters than real people. These characters just weren’t a good fit for me.
Strong Like You, by T.L. Simpson. Solid writing here, but the voice just didn’t work for me.
Those Beyond the Wall, by Micaiah Johnson. Yeah, my first clue this wasn’t for me should have been the author’s note that basically said rage was a good thing. No. No, it’s not. But I kept reading, and found the style to be a bit more chaotic and confusing than I like.
The Princess of Las Vegas, by Chris Bohjalian. The MC just didn’t work for me. I don’t like superficial people, and I just couldn’t get past that.
Tomorrow Is Another Day 
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